Rules about clients using their registered practice’s OOH service?

RE: Rules about clients using their registered practice’s OOH service?

jojofruits — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 17:14:50 GMT

And this is exactly why many practice outsource their emergency work these days...

many clients want and expect a 24/7 service and this one of the least stress ways to provide it. They w[quote user="Sal the 1st"]

[quote user="jojofruits"]

Our society these days everyone wants everything now and convienient. Opening on Sat afternoons is a very good business call!

[/quote]

agreed so long as you have the staff to cover the extra hours - if you don't then you end up with knackered workforce who then start to look for an easier life elsewhere.

We currently have clients who think it is perfectly ok for our staff to work 24/7 and sort out their little problems at the same time telling us that they don't want an early appointment because they don't get up that early. Apparently staff don't need to sleep or take a break and on the flip side they don't need to pay.

[/quote]They will have to pay though! ;)

RE: Rules about clients using their registered practice’s OOH service?

Sal the 1st — Sat, 09 Mar 2019 09:51:05 GMT

[quote user="jojofruits"]

Our society these days everyone wants everything now and convienient. Opening on Sat afternoons is a very good business call!

[/quote]

agreed so long as you have the staff to cover the extra hours - if you don't then you end up with knackered workforce who then start to look for an easier life elsewhere.

RE: Rules about clients using their registered practice’s OOH service?

jojofruits — Fri, 08 Mar 2019 10:27:50 GMT

Its a free world and people have a choice. Many clients use more than one vets but don't tell you.. Oh! I go to blah blah vet for his vacs because they are cheaper there but any " real" stuff, I come to you!

If you're open and it son google, they will find you, and take it as a positive! If you're getting new clients this way then maybe their own vets will have to consider altering their opening arrangements

Our society these days everyone wants everything now and convienient. Opening on Sat afternoons is a very good business call!

I think as long as the client is aware that you have no clinical history or access to records then the choice is 100% up to them. I feel that we cannot and should not restrict people, its up to them who they use and why :)

RE: Rules about clients using their registered practice’s OOH service?

Sal the 1st — Wed, 06 Mar 2019 23:31:45 GMT

we get people ringing us (also a small independent doing our own ooh, now sharing the on call with another independent in the same town). We find that people call us because they either don't want to go to their regular practice who do all of their ooh at their main surgery which isn't that close, or they don't want to pay the ooh prices at their regular practice (which are a lot higher than ours) or they have an outstanding account at every other vets in the area - breeders with emergency caesars seem to be the worst. Fastest way to inherit a bad debtor can be the 'new client' ooh emergency

RE: Rules about clients using their registered practice’s OOH service?

apache — Sun, 03 Mar 2019 23:25:07 GMT

I see it very much as if you are doing your own OOH and another practice isn't then you can legitimately refuse to see the client and direct them to their usual practice's designated OOH without accusations of refusing to see a sick animal.

If you want to see the animal, don't charge millions of pounds, then you may well end up with a client bonded for life. You are perfectly within your rights to see the client if they want to come to you and you are prepare to see them. Obviously you should ask for history as soon as possible (but OOH I find it rarely useful, the ambulance service or A&E manage).

RE: Rules about clients using their registered practice’s OOH service?

cleow92 — Sun, 03 Mar 2019 22:16:39 GMT

Thank you! Yes - my last practice which was 24h independent, used to add a surcharge to non-clients, mainly to discourage as we were already so busy with the workload of our own clients and these people would likely come for treatment and then move back to their regular clinic, so not really beneficial to us to see them. My current clinic don’t charge a surcharge but just recommend people to use their own practice OOH service. Because there is no deterrent Of this kind (which used to put people off as soon as you mentioned it!) I want to be able to provide a proper explanation for why it is best for them to use their own practice OOH.

I guess I just wanted to know if there was any ’official’ reasoning or standpoint on this. I looked through RCVS code of conduct but couldn’t find anything specific about it, other than stating that practices are within their rights to refuse treatment to non-clients requesting an OOH appointment (aside from emergency first aid).

RE: Rules about clients using their registered practice’s OOH service?

Maisy — Sun, 03 Mar 2019 20:16:35 GMT

I suppose from the practice who outsources POV they probably won't advise going to another primary practice in case the owner decides to move there completely (if the client prefers having a practice who has their own 24 hour services). For the practice who sees these clients, many will add a surcharge to owners who use them just so they don't have to use their own practices OOH provider and prefer to keep their weekend/night appointments for registered clients.

There's nothing to stop a client registered at a practice who outsources to go somewhere other than Vets Now/Medivet/other emergency provider if another clinic is nearer/cheaper. I guess it depends on the policy of the practice who they want to go to and whether they apply a non-client surcharge, or would only see the pet in an emergency if they are busy with their own clients.